Mucus (also known as phlegm) is a common product of colds and other upper respiratory infections. Dealing with mucus can be incredibly frustrating and seemingly never ending. If you are looking for relief from mucus buildup in your throat and nose, then try some of these methods of treatment.

Ad

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Using Home Remedies

1

Let it out. Although it can be loud, gross, or embarrassing, letting the mucus out of your body is the best way for getting rid of it. When you feel an urge to cough up mucus or blow your nose, don’t ignore it. Swallowing phlegm can reintroduce it back into your system, and holding in a stuffy or drippy nose is simply uncomfortable. It’s best to keep a box of tissues on hand and just let the mucus out.

Ad

2

Keep hydrated. As with all illnesses, keeping hydrated is essential to healing quickly. Help your body to clear out the mucus by drinking water hourly throughout the day. You can choose to supplement your fluid intake with juice and tea as well, if you like.

3

Steam it out. Steam helps to break up mucus in your chest, nose, and throat, allowing you to expel it from your body easier. Boil a pot of water and mix in a few drops of eucalyptus oil. Hold your face over the bowl and breathe in the steam for several minutes. Additionally, you can take a hot shower to help break up the mucus.[1]

4

Use a gargle. Mix a tablespoon of salt with a cup of warm water and gargle the mixture for 30 seconds. Doing this several times a day will help to clear out mucus trapped in the back of your throat and in your nasal passageways.

5

Drink herbal tea. Hot tea is a general aid for soothing irritated throats and inducing relaxation; brew up a cup of your favorite herbal tea with honey and sip it slowly. The heat will help to break up the mucus in your throat while the moisture from the water and honey will relax your irritated esophagus. Ginger, chamomile, and lemon teas are particularly helpful for getting rid of mucus.

6

Use lemon and honey. Mix approximately 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and a tablespoon of honey with a cup of hot water. This mixture should help clear your throat, as the lemon will cut through the mucus while the honey will soothe the throat.

7

Try Menthol/Eucalyptus cough drops. Somewhere between a natural and an over-the counter remedy, these cough drops are good for the loosening of phlegm in the throat and lungs.

8

Try eating turmeric. This natural antiseptic works to kill the bacteria your body is battling with mucus production. Mix a bit of turmeric into whatever you drink, or chug it down with a glass of water. A few teaspoons of the substance a day will leave you mucus-free in no time.

9

Consume more ginger. Ginger has been used for centuries for treating cold and sinus symptoms because of its natural antibacterial properties. If you can stand the taste, eat it raw or go for a milder candied form. You can also grate fresh ginger into boiling water to create a tea that will do double-duty on ridding your throat of mucus.

10

Eat garlic. Similar to ginger, garlic is incredibly potent and works well on killing the bacteria and ridding your throat of mucus. Eat several cloves of garlic raw daily, and grate it into the foods that you eat as well. If you are able, eating the garlic right as you wake up in the morning will help kill the mucus before it has time to really start flowing.

11

Try natural herbs. Eating some herbs such as licorice, fenugreek, and chickweed will help to clear your throat of mucus. Add them to your food or, if you can manage the taste, eat them raw or boiled in water to create a tea.[2]

12

Use a nasal rinse. Purchase a saline nasal rinse from your drugstore or try using an old fashioned neti pot. Flushing sterile water and a saline solution through your sinuses will clean out the mucus in your nose and at the back of your throat.Caution: One should only use sterile water for nasal rinses. Sterilize water by bringing it to a boil, then let it cool to room temperature while covered before attempting to use it. Tap water may be certified safe to drink, yet contain pathogens that can cause a fatal infection when introduced into the sinuses.

13

Take an expectorant. These are medications that work to break up mucus in your nose and throat, and help you to cough it up and expel it from your body easier. Many are available over-the-counter at local drugstores, while some can be prescribed by a doctor. Follow the dosage instructions and take the expectorant daily to relieve yourself of congestion as a result of mucus.[3]

14

Eat spicy foods. As you may be able to attest, spicy foods break up the mucus in your nose and causes it to run a bit more easily. Help your body to break down all its mucus by eating as many spicy foods as you can handle. These may include chilli peppers, horseradish, or wasabi.

15

Use a humidifier. Increasing the moisture level in your air will make the mucus in your body thinner and easier to deal with. Keep a humidifier running at all times when you’re home, and especially at night as you sleep. Add eucalyptus essential oil to the water for an added mucus-fighting punch.

16

Hum. This is what many singers do so that they can bring back their singing voice. By humming, you may be able to create vibrations that are are strong enough to break up the mucus.

17

Use your facial muscles. Creating movement in the nasal cavity can be helpful in dislodging stuck mucus. Gargling and humming have already been mentioned, you can also try:

Method 2 of 2: Avoiding Irritants

Don’t eat dairy. All dairy products contain a particular protein, casein, which congeals and creates more mucus in your body. To prevent creating more mucus unnecessarily, don’t eat any dairy products such as milk, cheese, yogurt, or ice cream.

2

Avoid fried foods. Deep fried foods that are very greasy make it difficult for mucus in your body to break apart, drawing out the amount of time you have to suffer with too much phlegm. Don’t eat anything deep-fried or cooked in heavy oil to avoid this.

3

Avoid food allergens. An allergy or sensitivity to a food can produce and thicken mucus. If your mucus problem is chronic, and not related to a specific cold or illness, it might be worth it to get tested to find out if a food allergy might be a contributing cause.The most common food allergens are:

Dairy

Wheat

Soy

Nuts

Shellfish

4

Try not to eat meat. Meat has ties to mucus production, so consuming it during a cold isn’t the best. Besides the fact that you can’t really taste the true flavor of the meat with a stuffy nose, the meat might make your nose worse. Best to play it safe rather than sorry and stay away from too much meat while you are suffering from too much mucus.

5

Don’t smoke. Anything that you inhale affects your body, and inhaling damaging things such as smoke from cigarettes, cigars, or other drugs can greatly worsen the condition of your throat and lungs. The smoke from these things interfere with your body’s ability to heal quickly, as well as greatly increase the amount of mucus your body is producing. Try to cut smoking out of your lifestyle at least during the duration of your illness.

6

Limit your exposure to irritants. Household cleaners,enamels, paint fumes and other chemicals worsen respiratory conditions and increase mucus levels. Keep your windows open to allow fresh air into your home, keep irritants quarantined during your illness, and avoid places (such as bars or a paint store) where these things are likely to be present.[4]

Ad

We could really use your help!

Can you tell us aboutHarvard Business School?

Yes

No

Harvard Business School

how to get into Harvard Business School

Can you tell us aboutnebulizers?

Yes

No

nebulizers

how to clean a nebulizer

Can you tell us aboutfruit leather?

Yes

No

fruit leather

how to make fruit leather

Can you tell us aboutrepairing couches?

Yes

No

repairing couches

how to fix a sagging couch

Thanks for helping! Please tell us everything you know about

...

Tell us everything you know here. Remember, more detail is better.

Tips

Provide Details.

Please be as detailed as possible in your explanation. Don't worry about formatting! We'll take care of it.
For example:Don't say: Eat more fats.Do say: Add fats with some nutritional value to the foods you already eat. Try olive oil, butter, avocado, and mayonnaise.

Video

This video shows you how to get rid of mucus in your throat.

Tips

Try not to blow your nose too much, especially on only one side. The force of it can blow mucus farther into your sinuses and ears, causing headaches and earaches. If you need to blow, do so gently and with both nostrils.

If the mucus gets so thick in the throat to the point you can't breathe or swallow drink water immediately for temporary treatment then blow nose and hum for 2 minutes. If you can't breathe still and the mucus keeps building up, then you need to go to the doctor right away.

When breathing in hot steam from a boiled cup of water, breathe in slowly so that the effect will be stronger. Instead of just snorkeling it in, gently and slowly breathe it in.

Warnings

Do not strain your throat to get the mucus from your throat to your mouth. This can do damage to your throat.

Share

Featured Articles

Meet a Community Member

Meet Adelaide, a wikiHowian who has been a community member for over two years and has written 173 articles. She enjoys being a Welcomer and New Article Booster, and she helps a lot of people through the Help Team. She also enjoys copyediting articles and has boosted over 6,300 articles. Her proudest accomplishment on wikiHow was having a topic she started, How to Create Your Own Map with MapBox.com, become a Featured Article. When it comes to the wikiHow community, Adelaide loves the collaborative spirit and says it’s nice to see so many like-minded editors sharing advice and helping the content grow. To new contributors, she advises, “Edit fearlessly and boldly, and don’t be afraid to ask questions!”